Abstract
The use of stimulants has important implications for HIV prevention and care. However, few investigations have examined psychological correlates of substance use and adherence to anti-retroviral therapy (ART) among HIV-positive stimulant users. This crosssectional investigation examined affective correlates of stimulant use and ART adherence among HIV-positive methamphetamine users. In total, 122 HIV-positive men who have sex with men or transgendered individuals on ART who reported using methamphetamine in the past 30 days were recruited from the community. HIV-specific traumatic stress was consistently and independently associated with more frequent cocaine/crack use (but not with methamphetamine use). Positive affect was independently associated with a decreased likelihood of reporting any injection drug use and an increased likelihood of reporting perfect ART adherence. HIV-specific traumatic stress may be an important determinant of increased cocaine/crack use in this population. Positive affect may increase the likelihood that individuals will refrain from injection drug use and achieve high levels of ART adherence.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 769-777 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | AIDS and behavior |
Volume | 14 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 2010 |
Funding
Acknowledgments This research was supported by a health, medicine, and behavior grant from the Anthony Marchionne Foundation. Additional funding for this research was provided by a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health, University of California—San Francisco Center for AIDS Prevention Studies (P30 MH062246-6) and a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (T32-MH019391). This project was also supported by Grant Number UL1 RR024131 from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and NIH Roadmap for Medical Research, and its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official view of NCRR of NIH. Information on NCRR is available at http://www.ncrr.nih.gov/. Information on Re-engineering the Clinical Research Enterprise can be obtained from http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/ clinicalresearch/overview-translational.asp. Finally, the authors would like to thank Kenneth Williams, the research assistant for the present study, who coordinated an excellent recruitment effort and conducted study interviews.
Keywords
- Cocaine
- HIV/AIDS
- Methamphetamine
- Positive affect
- Self medication hypothesis
- Trauma
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Psychology
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
- Infectious Diseases